Saturday, January 10, 2009

Large anti-DOMA, anti-Prop 8 demo in San Diego

San Diego took part in today's national day of protest against the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and against Proposition 8, the constitutional amendment that re-banned same-sex marriage in California.

The march wandered through downtown, beginning and ending at the County Administration Center.

Reporters counted between 600 and 800 people. A high-ranking policeman said he counted 560.

A notable percentage of the marchers seemed to be straight but not narrow.

The march stopped for several minutes (photo below) outside the Manchester Grand Hyatt hotel. Gays and unions have been boycotting the hotel since its owner gave a large donation to the campaign to pass Prop 8. They chanted, "Boycott the Hyatt, check out now."

The national day of protest was coordinated by Join The Impact, the same group that coordinated the 300-city, 50-state anti-Prop-8 demos last Nov. 15. JTI said the day's main objective was to demand that Barack Obama keep his campaign promise to repeal DOMA, which reads: "No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian tribe, shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State, territory, possession, or tribe respecting a relationship between persons of the same sex that is treated as a marriage under the laws of such other State, territory, possession, or tribe, or a right or claim arising from such relationship. In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife." Bill Clinton signed DOMA into law in 1996.

During the campaign, Obama said, "If elected, I would call on Congress to enact legislation that would repeal DOMA and ensure that the over 1,100 federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally recognized unions."

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